The Food and Drug Administration announced it has reviewed the data on Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine on Tuesday, finding it to be safe and effective.
The move pushes the vaccine forward on a track for emergency approval, potentially giving the US another key weapon in the fight to end the pandemic. More action is expected before the end of the week.
Moderna reported impressive numbers with its vaccine which it says is 94 percent effective, and 100 percent effective against extreme cases.
The news is bringing more hope even as hundreds of hospitals start vaccinating their workers today with the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID vaccine that’s now rolling out across the country.
Distribution began Monday with FedEx and UPS delivering the vaccine to all 50 states.
The first three million shots are being limited to health care workers on the front lines, along with older patients.
And hundreds of millions more are expected in the months ahead. The vaccine distribution comes as the US has now officially crossed another grim milestone – 300,000 deaths from the outbreak.
“That’s the worst public health catastrophe in 102 years since the 1918 pandemic,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Polls have shown a growing number of Americans are now willing to take a coronavirus vaccine.
And now that the FDA could approve a second vaccine from Moderna by the end of this week, that could provide quick protection for millions more Americans.